This invention relates generally to the field of support and positioning devices for the human body. Specifically, the invention relates to a positioning and posture control method and apparatus utilizing a system of body support modules that can be quickly and accurately shaped or reshaped to conform to the anatomy of the individual or by virtue of flexible and resilient members will shape to conform to the anatomy in response to the pressure exerted by the particular user.
Body support and positioning devices are needed in a variety of applications for positioning for maintenance of proper posture while the user performs a variety of tasks. These devices find application for persons with normal as well as abnormal anatomies. For example, the device of the present invention can be employed to position doctors and dentists and others who must work in a non-upright position, patients during surgery as well as during pre-and-post operative periods; racing car drivers, armored vehicle drivers, fighter pilots and others who are subject to high "g" forces and/or vibrations, mechanics on creepers, assembly line workers and the like.
In its deformable version, the invention finds particular applicability for custom fitting physically handicapped and developmentally disabled persons. Special wheelchairs designed to provide long term sitting comfort for trauma victims or amputees are well known in the prior art. Additionally, braces designed to aid the handicapped in their ability to stand or walk or provide orthopedic correction are also well known in the art. Representative examples of such braces and other supports are found in the following U.S. Pat. Nos.: 1,316,915; 1,935,859; 2,973,030; 3,094,984; 3,288,525; 3,605,731; 3,697,133; 3,724,144; 3,771,513; 3,938,509; 3,945,376; 4,080,962; 4,245,627 and 4,300,249.
In recent years another group of physically impaired individuals, the neurologically disabled, has created through their special needs, even more challenging requirements in the design of wheelchairs and other supporting devices. Neuromuscular disabilities stem from injury, disease or developmental disorder of the brain or central nervous system. The more severely involved lack the intelligence, balance or muscle tone to stand or even sit up properly. Over the years the lack of proper equipment and provisions for positioning these individuals has allowed them to physically develop abnormally resulting in gross deformities of their anatomies and life threatening misalignment of their vital organs. These individuals require a wheelchair with significant external support in the form of a sitting brace that controls posture through proper positioning.
The concept of "positioning" as a form of therapy has emerged as a significant means to control deformity, provide opportunity for cognitive growth and align the vital organs while feeding, during therapy or at rest. Equally important is the understanding that proper positioning can break up primitive reflex patterns and help control tonal asymmetry and contractures which are so destructive to normal physical and mental development.
Prior art chairs and wheelchairs were not intended to externally support and position the disabled and conform to the asymmetry characteristics of the deformed anatomy. Various brace designs were intended only for ambulatory patients. The state of the art is to strap the patient into standard wheelchairs that have been adapted by the addition of bolsters and cushions generally made in the carpentry shop of the hospital. Commercial sources for custom positioning inserts are nearly non-existent for a number of reasons. The first is coping with all the different variations of deformities requires an extremely adaptable and adjustable chair that is very expensive to manufacture. A second reason is a medical equipment supplier does not have enough time to go through the long and arduous fitting of each multi-adjustable positioner. Lastly, the harsh institutional environment quickly rusts the frame and breaks down the upholstery to shorten the useful life of the unit to a point that it is not economically feasible.
Therefore, it is the purpose of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for supporting and positioning the disabled in an inexpensive system that can accommodate their various anatomical deformities, be fitted to the individual quickly and accurately and be constructed of materials tolerant of the harsh institutional environment.
In another version of this invention, it is envisioned that a number of different people may need to be positioned in the same device making custom fitting to each individual impractical. In this case, the positioning device flexes in response to pressure exerted by the shape and weight of the individual. Control of posture and position is effected by the "spring rate" or control of the amount of flexibility of the deformable elements as they yield under the weight and position of the individual.